


An Attempt at Reconciliation

by orphan_account



Category: The Hobbit (2012), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: M/M, someone suggested i do this prompt so i did
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-19
Updated: 2013-02-19
Packaged: 2017-11-29 19:28:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/690588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>******SPOILERS, AU******* Instead of Thorin dying in BoFA, Bilbo does. In attempt to help himself recover, Thorin adopts a recently orphaned Frodo.<br/>Just a quick one-shot someone wanted me to do.</p>
            </blockquote>





	An Attempt at Reconciliation

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this on my iPod when my family lost our power in a storm. It's back now, yay!

Thorin stared down at his hands, wondering how to greet the boy. It would be only a short time before he arrived. He had a lot of explaining ahead of him, and even then he still had to win the boy's trust, and only Mahal knew how that would turn out.  
It's a shame that the boy's parents had to die so shortly after his cousin did. Thorin thought. It seems death surrounds the poor lad.  
Kili walked into his study to see him. "Uncle," he said, "you are nervous."  
Thorin just grunted in reply. It was hard enough dealing with this to have to deal with his nephew.  
Usually, his grunt made his nephew run off to do something else, but his feet stayed firmly where they rested. "Uncle, you couldn't have prevented the war."  
Thorin clenched his fists. "Leave. I need time to think over what happened."  
"You've been mourning a year and everyone knows! You couldn't prevent Bilbo's death, and we're all waiting for the day you wake up and realize that."  
Thorin hit the desk he sat at with his fist, almost breaking it. "If I hadn't been so filled with greed then things could've gone differently."  
"Even if you weren't sick because of the gold you still wouldn't have been able to prevent the inevitable war over who got Erebor."  
"Yes, but the war wouldn't have been nearly as bad." He stared down at his desk, letting the salty tears burn his eyes before falling. "If it weren't for what I did, he may still be here."  
"I guess I can't convince you otherwise." Kili sighed. "Goodbye, uncle, I am going to go continue preparations on Frodo's quarters."  
Thorin thought back to when he banished Bilbo, the hobbit who only hours before he had kissed and declared the one he would give his heart to, or at least whatever was left of it.  
The loneliness hit him, a pain that ran through his entire body. Bilbo was in the afterlife early because of him.  
Thorin had offered to adopt Frodo as a way of making amends with Bilbo's spirit, but there was never a guarantee that Bilbo would ever forgive him. That was perhaps what hurt the most, knowing that all he could do was try to make it up to him. But he also understood why Bilbo might possibly never forgive him.  
Dwalin opened his door, stating that the boy had arrived. Thorin was exhausted, but he told Dwalin to let the boy into his study.  
Thorin hadn't really known what to expect of the tiny halfling. His hair was the color of chocolate, his eyes blue, his skin the color of flour, and he was short and slightly chubby. He was almost an exact copy of how Bilbo had looked when he first met him. He smiled up at Thorin, smiling as if there was nothing to be sad about in the world. "Hi, I'm Frodo!" he said.  
"Hello," Thorin said, reaching out his hand to the small boy. When Frodo took it, he could see his hands were barely larger than Thorin's fingers. "My name is Thorin Oakenshield, and I knew your cousin."  
"You knew Uncle Bilbo?" His voice was high-pitched, and it sounded like what his own nephews' voices once had.  
Thorin didn't question why he called Bilbo uncle rather than cousin, just nodded. "And what a remarkable man he was."  
Frodo smiled. "Where am I, anyway? Everyone kept telling me I needed to come somewhere but they never told me where it was."  
"Erebor," Thorin said.  
The boy's eyes widened. "What's it like here?"  
"It's a lively place," he said. "I'm its king."  
"You're a king?" The awe in his voice filled Thorin with joy.  
He nodded. "That I am, Frodo."  
"How did you know Uncle Bilbo?"  
"He helped me save Erebor from a dragon."  
"A dragon?" Frodo jumped from one hairy foot to the other. "Uncle Bilbo faced off against a dragon?"  
"Yes, he really did."  
"He's amazing!"  
"He is," Thorin replied. He wrapped his arm around Frodo's shoulders. "Would you like to get a bite to eat?"  
"I'm starving!"'Frodo said. "What kind of food do you have in Erebor?"  
"The finest foods imaginable," said Thorin. "We've got the juiciest meats, the most well cooked breads, the finest wine, though you're a little young for that, and desserts that will make you fall over in delight. You'll love it!"  
Frodo grabbed Thorin's hand and began to pull it. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go eat!"  
Thorin chuckled, knowing he couldn't deny the boy his food. "I'll make sure our top chef Bombur brings you the best Erebor has to offer."  
Frodo ate dish after dish, the sides of his mouth and the front of his shirt collecting whatever fell from or didn't reach his mouth. Thorin knew hobbits ate a lot-Bilbo had mentioned that they ate on average seven meals a day-but Frodo ate as though he hadn't eaten in months; Thorin had even made sure those who were supposed to bring him to Erebor gave him as much food as he asked for.  
"Do you like it?" asked Thorin, already knowing the answer.  
"Yes!" Frodo replied, then took another bite out his blackberry cobbler. "This is almost as good as Uncle Bilbo's cupcakes."  
Thorin made sure to hide the sadness he felt at those words. Never again would Frodo get to taste those, and it was all because of Thorin.  
Eventually, Frodo fell asleep, his eyes suddenly closing and his head hitting the table, just barely missing the plate of food in front of him. Thorin gently picked him up and carried him to his chambers, then placed him down on the bed and kissed the top of his head. "Sleep well," he said.  
Just as he was about to leave, he heard Frodo faintly whisper to him goodbye. "I love you, Uncle Thorin."  
Outside in the hallway, Fili and Kili smiled at him, and he forced a smile for it. They fell for his lie and became happier.  
Once inside his own chambers, Thorin laid on his bed and cried. Despite small differences, Bilbo and Frodo were quite alike. He cried himself to sleep, and all throughout the night he dreamed of Bilbo and himself. They kissed and made love and were happy, but he always woke up from them and he'd remember that Bilbo was gone. He'd fall asleep again and it would all repeat.  
After the sixth time that it happened, he didn't try to go to sleep. That was when he noticed a faint snoring sound in his room. Looking around, he noticed a small figure at the foot of his bed.  
He must have had a nightmare like I did, Thorin thought.  
Gently, he reached out and covered the boy in a blanket. He didn't notice, just continued to sleep. His snoring helped Thorin fall asleep as well, though he couldn't remember what he dreamed of.

**Author's Note:**

> So please tell me what you think!


End file.
